ONE Television

ONE Television, also known as On Europe Television, was a Swedish television channel launched by SBS Broadcasting in 2006 and discontinued less than a year later. The channel originated in the Swedish licensing process for new television services held in autumn 2005. SBS, which also operated Kanal 5, initially developed the project under the working name “Ny Kanal 1.” The name was not intended to revive or continue the former Swedish public-service channel Kanal 1; it was a proposed identity for a new commercial free-to-air service. The channel was conceived for an underserved middle-aged audience. Its intended viewers were generally described as mature and active adults between 40 and 59, with a particular emphasis on men in the 40–49 demographic. This positioning differentiated ONE Television from younger-skewing entertainment channels, although the service entered a difficult market in which established channels already had stronger audience recognition and programming resources. ONE Television began its transmissions on 24 May 2006. Before its independent launch, it used timesharing arrangements with The Voice TV. The launch timing reflected a government requirement that the newly licensed channels begin broadcasting during spring 2006. ONE Television therefore entered the market alongside other new or repositioned free-to-air services, including TV6, which replaced ZTV. The simultaneous arrival of TV6 created a challenging competitive environment, particularly because TV6 had a more attractive and commercially effective programming mix. The channel’s schedule included imported and established television programs such as the British police drama The Bill, the crime series Murder Investigation Team, and the music program Later with Jools Holland. These acquisitions were consistent with the channel’s attempt to combine mature drama, crime and factual-oriented entertainment with music programming. However, SBS lacked some of the programming strengths available to competitors, most notably a significant sports offering. That limitation weakened ONE Television’s ability to compete for broad free-to-air audiences. ONE Television ceased broadcasting on 25 February 2007, after operating for roughly nine months. It was replaced by Kanal 9, another SBS-backed Swedish channel. The replacement marked a strategic shift away from the original ONE Television concept and toward a new channel proposition. As a result, ONE Television is best understood as a short-lived Swedish broadcast-channel brand rather than as an enduring media company. Its historical importance lies in the mid-2000s expansion and restructuring of Swedish commercial television, the use of regulatory licensing to introduce new services, and the rapid replacement of a channel whose audience and programming strategy did not achieve sufficient competitive traction.

ONE Television was a short-lived Swedish commercial television channel established by SBS Broadcasting during a period of expansion in Sweden’s free-to-air television market. The project emerged from the autumn 2005 licensing process for new television channels. SBS initially referred to the proposed service as Ny Kanal 1. The working name was not connected to the earlier Swedish public-service channel Kanal 1; it described a new commercial service being prepared by the operator of Kanal 5. The channel was designed around a demographic proposition rather than a broad mass-market identity. SBS sought to reach viewers aged roughly 40 to 59, with a core target described as mature and active men in the 40–49 age range. Its program strategy included recognizable imported series and entertainment formats, including The Bill, Murder Investigation Team and Later with Jools Holland. The mix was intended to give the channel a mature profile based on drama, crime and music programming. ONE Television began broadcasting on 24 May 2006. Its launch occurred under a regulatory timetable requiring new licensed channels to start during spring 2006. The service initially timeshared with The Voice TV, another channel associated with the Swedish commercial broadcasting environment. This arrangement allowed ONE Television to begin operating while making use of existing transmission capacity. The channel entered the market at the same time as other significant changes in Swedish television. TV6 launched as a free-to-air service replacing ZTV and had a comparatively stronger programming proposition. TV6’s schedule included sports, an area in which SBS did not have an equivalent offering for ONE Television. This placed ONE Television at a disadvantage in the competition for viewers and advertising attention, despite its clearly defined target audience. After approximately nine months of broadcasting, ONE Television closed on 25 February 2007. SBS replaced it with Kanal 9, indicating that the original channel concept had not been retained as a continuing service. ONE Television consequently became a historical example of a rapidly discontinued television brand created during a period of channel proliferation and regulatory change. Its legacy is primarily associated with SBS’s attempt to build a mature-audience free-to-air service and with the competitive difficulty of launching a new general entertainment channel without the breadth of programming available to stronger rivals.

• 2007

  Broadcasting ends

  [1]ONE Televisionen.wikipedia.org

  ONE Television closes on 25 February 2007 and is replaced by Kanal 9.

• 2006

  ONE Television launches

  [1]ONE Televisionen.wikipedia.org

  The channel begins broadcasting on 24 May 2006, using timesharing arrangements with The Voice TV and targeting mature, active viewers.

• 2005

  SBS develops the Ny Kanal 1 project

  [1]ONE Televisionen.wikipedia.org

  SBS Broadcasting develops a proposed Swedish free-to-air channel following the autumn licensing process for new television services. The project later becomes ONE Television.

A Swedish free-to-air channel for mature and active viewers, with an intended core audience of men approximately 40 to 49 years old.

• Television channel · 2006

  ONE Television free-to-air channel

  The core product was a Swedish commercial free-to-air television service aimed at mature and active adults. The channel’s intended center of gravity was male viewers aged approximately 40 to 49, with a broader target range of about 40 to 59. Its schedule combined imported drama and crime series with music and entertainment programming. The service operated from 2006 until its closure in February 2007.

• 2007

  Replace ONE Television with Kanal 9Strategy

  Background

  ONE Television faced competition from TV6, whose programming was described as more successful and included sports, a category SBS did not provide in the same way for ONE Television.

  Action taken

  SBS closed ONE Television on 25 February 2007 and replaced it with Kanal 9.

  Aftermath

  The ONE Television brand disappeared from the Swedish broadcasting market after roughly nine months of operation.

  Source

• 2005

  Create a mature-audience free-to-air channelStrategy

  Background

  SBS Broadcasting sought to use a newly licensed Swedish television service to reach viewers older than the typical audience for youth-oriented commercial channels.

  Action taken

  The company developed the Ny Kanal 1 project, later branded ONE Television, with a focus on mature and active viewers, especially men aged 40 to 49.

  Aftermath

  The channel launched in 2006 but was discontinued within a year and replaced by Kanal 9.

  Source

1. 1ONE Televisionen.wikipedia.org
2. 2ONE Television official websiteonetelevision.se